This is a study of: 1) alterations in serum and in polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL) which occur in patients with acute bacterial infection and certain myeloproliferative states; 2) studies of normal human PMNL in response to soluble chemotactic factors such as C5a and N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (FMLP). The present research, both on PMNL obtained from patients with acute bacterial infection and on studies of normal PMNL, emphasizes membrane events which may be coupled to hexose transport, aggregation, lysosomal enzyme release, and oxidative metabolism of the PMNL. Present data substantiates a role for arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism in PMNL functions of glucose transport and aggregation. More specifically, hexose transport is associated with arachidonic acid metabolism, at least in part, through the production of hydroxylated compounds produced by the lipoxygenase pathway. Since increased glucose transport is observed in PMNL from patients with acute bacterial infection and polycythemia vera, we postulate alteration in arachidonic acid metabolism in these pathologies. Comparisons will be made between normal PMNL, and PMNL from patients with polycythemia vera, or acute bacterial infections. These will also be compared with the effects upon PMNL arachidonate metabolism induced by certain soluble mediators (C5a, FMLP) which in themselves mimic the physiologic alterations observed in PMNL from patients with acute bacterial infections. These will also be compared with alterations in arachidonic acid metabolism induced by the calcium ionophore, A23187. Finally there will be studies to further characterize a low molecular weight serum factor which is elaborated during acute bacterial infection and which is chemokinetic for normal PMNL.